Wednesday 13th April 2011

Mini John Cooper Works WRC Revealed

It may be a bit of a mouthful, but it's tasty too...

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Mini has launched its Prodrive developed WRC challenger at the Mini Cowley plant, with an all-star cast including veteran rallyists Paddy Hopkirk and Rauno Aaltonen who appeared briefly on stage with a replica 1960s Monte winner.

The '60s car arrived on stage with one of its headlamps on the blink, which was an amusing reminder that in Mini terms 'old' needn't mean 'better' - even if it indisputably means smaller. However the new Prodrive built machine appeared poised, purposeful and - thanks to a ground-hugging suspension set-up for the launch - significantly less overbearing than the stodgy SUV-esque Countryman with which it shares a body shell.

There's no mention of Countryman in the new rally car's name, which has been officially dubbed the MINI John Cooper Works WRC, and which in the words of brand motorsport director Dirk Hollweg 'will wake up sleeping motorsport fans'. (That means you - pay attention at the back! Ed)

Apparently, the WRC organisers are looking closely at internet TV streaming of events in future, which bodes well for armchair (office chair?), even if you can't see much on mainstream telly channels this year.

Prodrive boss David Richards spoke briefly about the Mini WRC project genesis, which began life some time before any contact was made with BMW. "The new regulations gave us a chance to take a totally fresh look (at rally car design), and two years ago we started designing a generic car without knowing which car it was actually going to be," he said. "Then - almost coincidentally - we heard Mini was launching the Countryman, and I knew we had to be involved."

In case any non-rally fans are wondering, a regular Mini 5dr (aka Clubman) is too small for the WRC regs at 3958mm, but the Countryman cuts the mustard with its 4097mm 'length overall'. Its standard 4x4 drivetrain and 1.6 litre turbo engine are bang on the money too.

As well as the two Prodrive run factory cars which will be piloted by Kris Meeke and Dani Sordo, we're told to expect up to 5 customer Minis on the start line in Sardinia on May 5th when the new machines line up for their first WRC challenge. Altogether six rounds will be contested by factory cars in 2011, with a full championship challenge to follow next year.

If you like the look of the new Mini rally car, Prodrive will furnish you a fully supported one from around £350k per season and you can enter it into the national rally championship of your choice. We're guessing there must be less fun ways to burn through a small fortune...

[Beefmeister]

article said:

In case any non-rally fans are wondering, a regular Mini 5dr is too small for the WRC regs at 3958mm, but the Countryman cuts the mustard with its 4097mm 'length overall'.

Do you mean the Clubman? Okay, I suppose technically it has 5 doors....

[Beefmeister]

Chris-R said:

Chris-R said:

Yes, the three door is even shorter at 3732mm(ish!)

And is there any other way to count doors than 'technically'?

Good point - I just thought like the above poster that it had 4drs. Then realised that there were 2 on the back!